UFC heavyweight Christian Morecraft arrested, charged with OUI

UFC heavyweight Christian Morecraft was arrested this past weekend and charged with operating a vehicle while under the influence, reckless driving, speeding and driving without a license.

Morecraft reportedly was arrested when he refused to take a breathalyzer test. He later was released on bail.

News of the arrest was first reported by the Barnstable-Hyannisport (Mass.) Patch.com site, and MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) subsequently confirmed Morecraft’s arrest.

“A good man is an honest man and I made a mistake,” stated a message on Morecraft’s Facebook page.

Officers from the Barnstable (Mass.) Police Department pulled over Morecraft on the evening of Sept. 1. He subsequently was arrested on suspicion of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, driving so as to endanger, speeding and driving with no license in possession.

A representative from the Barnstable PD said the fighter was due in court on Sept. 4, but couldn’t verify whether Morecraft had attended.

A request for comment from the UFC wasn’t returned, and Morecraft could not be reached.

Morecraft (7-3 MMA, 1-3 UFC) made his octagon debut at UFC 117, where Stefan Struve knocked him out in the second round. He then earned a submission win over Sean McCorkle before losing back-to-back fights to Matt Mitrione and Pat Barry.

A total of 26 fighters got their chance to shine on Saturday as part of UFC 190 at Rio de Janeiro’s HSBC Arena. Now that UFC 190 is in the books, it’s time to commence MMAjunkie’s “Three Stars” ceremony.

The man known for cranking submissions to the point of injury added eye-gouging to his repertoire. But is the controversy of Rousimar Palhares too essential to his bizarre, awful appeal for his employers to take any meaningful action against him?